art and design

I’m an early-bird but there’s not many events that would have me bounding out of bed, grabbing a stupendous strawberry, white chocolate and coconut muffin from Proud Mary and lining up with hundreds of other people at 8:45am at Southbank. But this was one very special garage sale. The Melbourne Theatre Company were moving, and […]

My trash TV confession – sitting through 12 cycles of America’s Next Top Model. But now it appears that all those hours have been time well spent! I’ve absorbed quite a bit of knowledge on photography and light while watching ‘fierce’ Tyra Banks and a bevy of model wannabes. That’s not to say I didn’t […]

As my regular readers will know, I’m getting married soon – and as a Chinese bride it is traditional to have a Chinese tea ceremony. So, another thing to tick off the wedding to-do list was to find a tea set. I wanted something that was vaguely Oriental, without any gaudy gold leaf or dragon/phoenix […]

Can you believe it’s the end of October and they’re erecting the Christmas tree at City Square already? Events this week: preview of The Brothers Bloom with Mark Ruffalo, Adrien Brody and Rachel Weisz; preview of Jane Campion’s latest film Bright Star, starring the gorgeous Abbie Cornish; glamming it up for homeless shelter charity Many Rooms […]

Most of the time I’m a sweet, unassuming, ladylike girl who is never critical, sarcastic or competitive. But get me near a Scrabble board and I transform into a ruthless Gordon Gecko type who crows triumphantly at every 7-letter word placed on a triple-word score. These Scrabble cufflinks are from Rose Street Artists Market regular […]

In Norse mythology, Valhalla is a majestic, enormous martial hall housing the chosen dead. I didn’t know this fact when I entered Valhalla, Callum Morton’s new work for the Melbourne International Arts Festival. I knew that the desolate, pock-marked, concrete crumble was a three-quarter scale replica of Morton’s childhood home and I knew that some […]

This week’s HOT Chat comes from Eco Fashionista. Alex Hume chatted to me about fashion, living eco-conscious and being a business-owner with a young toddler. Alex, how did Eco Fashionista come about? Eco Fashionista was launched almost a year to the day my son Max was born. Max’s arrival (and the huge sense of responsibility that arrived […]

My foodie friend from London and the Jetsetting Parents are in town this week, which means fewer social events and a LOT more restaurant reviews. Look out for posts on Grossi Florentino Grill, The Press Club, Yu.u, Mr Price’s Food Store and Nobu. Also, don’t forget on Wednesday 14 October it’s National Ride to Work Day. In Melbourne […]

The beginning of Peter Greenaway’s multimedia interpretation of Leonardo’s Last Supper certainly replicated my experience in Milan. Lining up, waiting, herded inside, more waiting… When we entered the dark room of the North Melbourne Town Hall the famous painting was projected onto one end, and the other painting in the refectory of Santa Maria delle […]

Thank goodnesss for frankie, an intelligent, quirky and stylish magazine, far removed from the dross of Who, Hello and That’s Life. For the first time, frankie are publishing the limited-run The Photo Album, a coffee-table collection of photographs from amateur and professional photographers. All of the images share the muted, off-beat, nostalgia-toned aesthetic of the […]